Ken Tucker
Ken Tucker reviews rock, country, hip-hop and pop music for Fresh Air. He is a cultural critic who has been the editor-at-large at Entertainment Weekly, and a film critic for New York Magazine. His work has won two National Magazine Awards and two ASCAP-Deems Taylor Awards. He has written book reviews for The New York Times Book Review and other publications.
Tucker is the author of Scarface Nation: The Ultimate Gangster Movie and Kissing Bill O'Reilly, Roasting Miss Piggy: 100 Things to Love and Hate About Television.
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The raucous singer turns thoughtful on his new album. Critic Ken Tucker calls Upland Stories a "marvelous mongrel mixture" of bluegrass banjo-picking, honky-tonk pedal steel and stark folk phrasings.
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The country music legend's new album mixes original material with interpretations of country classics. Reviewer Ken Tucker says the record shows a vulnerability that is somewhat new to Lynn's music.
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The surging voices of two female lead singers create the signature sound of the five-piece band Lucius. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the band's new album, Good Grief, is often lovely and well-crafted.
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The Waco Brothers recently released their first album of original material in more than a decade. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the music on Going Down in History is "urgent, precise and pointed."
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Raitt's new album is dominated by uptempo songs, R&B sounds and complex emotions. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the singer's distinctive style gives Dig In Deepa "vital glow."
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The debut album by the I Don't Cares features two familiar voices — Paul Westerberg and the singer-songwriter Juliana Hatfield. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the songs on Wild Stab "will grab you."
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The Australian songwriter who has written hits for Rihanna, Beyonce and Katy Perry just released an album of her own. Critic Ken Tucker likes Sia's singing, in part, because of its imperfections.
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Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the debut album by the Spanish quartet Hinds. "These four women revive the notion of do-it-yourself punk musicianship," Tucker says of Leave Me Alone.
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The singer-songwriter plays most of the instruments himself on his new album. Critic Ken Tucker says you can hear a love for pop music in Hughes' silly sentiments and artful arrangements.
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The "Love Me Like You Do" singer created her new album as an experiment — to see if she could make a "big pop album." Reviewer Ken Tucker says Goulding's experimental effort was worth the risk.
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The singer-songwriter's original Have Moicy! album, released in '76, mixed folk, blues and country. Critic Ken Tuckers says that despite the long wait, Stampfel's follow-up has a real immediacy to it.
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Rock Critic Ken Tucker presents his playlist for 2015, which includes the Alabama Shakes, Bruno Mars and Ashley Monroe, among others. For reading pleasure, he suggests Real Life Rock, by Greil Marcus.